


Compass Warriors: South

by maytanrex



Series: Compass Warriors [1]
Category: No Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe, Canon LGBTQ Male Character, Canon Non-Binary Character, Character Death, Death, Dysphoria, Gender Dysphoria, Homophobia, LGBTQ Character, LGBTQ Character of Color, LGBTQ Female Character, LGBTQ Female Character of Color, Multi, Murder, Racism, Science Fiction, Trans Character, Transitioning, Transphobia
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-29
Updated: 2020-08-29
Packaged: 2021-03-07 03:20:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,296
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26170084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maytanrex/pseuds/maytanrex
Summary: Compass warriors are known for their dedication to protect their people and their assigned region. There’s one compass warrior for each region (south, north, west and east), they are the ones in charge of protecting their people’s interests and wellbeing.  These warriors work in the shadows, most people think they are just some random urban myth but powerful people (such as criminals or politicians) know that they are real and they’re waiting for a reason to make an appearance. They are also known as shadow knights, because no one has ever seen them yet they still control everything. Some regions are more controlled and balanced than others, it all depends on who’s in charge. Compass warriors are born to be compass warriors, they are born with a black birthmark on the back of their necks which turns red when it’s time for them to be in charge. The shape of the birthmark is a cross from a compass that only has the letter of their region they were assigned. They also have several marks on their forearms which reflect the abilities they were taught when they were kids (these abilities are not related to their region but rather the knowledge of their mentors).
Series: Compass Warriors [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1900429
Kudos: 2





	1. The Wedding

Prologue:  
Compass warriors are known for their dedication to protect their people and their assigned region. There’s one compass warrior for each region (south, north, west and east), they are the ones in charge of protecting their people’s interests and wellbeing.  
These warriors work in the shadows, most people think they are just some random urban myth but powerful people (such as criminals or politicians) know that they are real and they’re waiting for a reason to make an appearance. They are also known as shadow knights, because no one has ever seen them yet they still control everything.  
Some regions are more controlled and balanced than others, it all depends on who’s in charge. Compass warriors are born to be compass warriors, they are born with a black birthmark on the back of their necks which turns red when it’s time for them to be in charge. The shape of the birthmark is a cross from a compass that only has the letter of their region they were assigned. They also have several marks on their forearms which reflect the abilities they were taught when they were kids (these abilities are not related to their region but rather the knowledge of their mentors).  
Shadow knights are stronger when they fight together, even though it’s not such a common event it often happens that they have to unite forces in order to defeat a stronger and common opponent. They also have several traditions and prophecies. 

Chapter one:

The weather was humid but warm, a nice combination for such an important day. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves, the music was good and the food tasted even better.  
Both of the brides seemed to be happy about their special day, but one seemed a bit worried.  
“He’s not gonna show up” West said.  
“So? Who cares if he shows up or not, he’s just a kid anyway. It’s not like his presence is the most important thing for our wedding” Amalia answered.  
West pulled a face, she didn’t feel like answering to that. She knew Amalia knew why his presence was so important in the event.  
West saw her other two friends, North and East, and walked towards them.  
“Hey West, enjoying your big day?” East asked, with a smile on their face.  
“Yeah, I guess” She replied, looking a bit off.  
“What’s the matter?” East asked. North had noticed her expression, he was very good at reading other people’s emotions, such a pity that he wasn’t great at managing his own.  
“Just…” West sighed “...it’s about South not showing up.”  
“Don’t worry about him, he doesn’t even show up when we invite him over, he just shows up when we have to do our thing.” North nodded “He’s still recovering from his incident, don’t forget he has just turned 18. Plus, you know how hurt he is from all the stuff that has happened to him. I’m surprised how well he manages his towns considering how traumatic that experience was”.

“I know he’s younger than us and I swear I try my best to understand him, but I just can’t get my head around it, why can’t he at least be here when the special ceremony is being held? After that, he can leave or do whatever he wants to do, but why can’t he just do this small thing?”

“You ask for too much considering it’s South we’re talking about, he doesn’t even follow the basic identity rules and you expect him to be here?” North finally opened his mouth. He was more of a quiet person rather than a talkative one, he just gave his opinion when he felt it was needed.  
“Exactly. Besides, you don’t really think that old prophecy is true, do you? I don’t think something terrible will happen just because South isn’t here to give you his blessing” East said.  
The ceremony and later party continued without any problems. Everything seemed just fine, but then, it all happened too fast. For when they were aware, Amalia was gone and there were several guests injured. Some shady men had broken in with guns, shot bullets at the air and gas bombs at the guests, then taken the bride with them. It all turned into a nightmare so quickly that no one had time to react and stop the kidnappers from taking the bride. West was destroyed, and North and East were both burning with anger.  
“It’s his fault” West cried. “South is responsible for this, if only he had been here…” she sobbed and then continued “we would have been able to react faster and stop them” she wiped her tears.  
North and East looked at each other, they both knew it had nothing to do with South’s presence but still understood she was hurt because of his absence. They knew she was just hurting because South had been a little bit of an asshole.  
West looked at East and North, she knew what their silence meant, they disagreed with her. North picked up a piece of paper from the floor, it had a logo on it, it was a fox tail.  
“They are gonna use her for experimenting…” North said, while looking at the piece of paper. “I know this gang, they originated in the..” he stayed silent before getting to finish his sentence.  
“South?” West asked. She was trying not to breakdown, she knew she had to stay strong for her wife.  
“…yes” North answered, trying to avoid looking at her. “Before you try to blame South again, listen to me. This gang is trying to experiment on people to see if they can imitate us or create a new kind of human beings that can stop us. We need South’s help to track them down and fight them” North finally looked at West.  
West didn’t look amused, there was something from what North had said that didn’t sit right with her. And she knew exactly what it was.  
“South’s help” she repeated.  
“Yeah…” East said. “I still don’t understand why you have such hard feelings for him” They looked at her.  
West took a moment to think about it. She held deep grudges for South, but all she wanted was to have her wife back, the love of her life. She knew they would have to use South’s help because 1) they would be stronger if they were all together and 2) South knew more about this gang than any of them. Even if she didn’t like him, deep down she knew that out of the four of them he was the one who knew how to control his region the most.  
East looked at West as they tried to imagine, or at least understand, what West was feeling like. They had a huge admiration for North’s deep understanding of people’s feelings and often tried to imitate him, but it was difficult since it was an ability North had acquired through years of training when he was just a kid.  
“Fine, let’s look for South then” West finally said.

South was lying in his room, staring at the ceiling. He closed his eyes and daydreamed for a while until he heard some little noises. It was Neon, his shape-shifting rat.  
“What’s going on, Neon?” South got up, sat on the floor and looked at him. “Is there anyone coming?...” Before South could even ask the next question, he felt it, in his chest. They were coming. His expression turned into a grumpy one, he could imagine what was about to go down. He sighed and closed his eyes, trying to calm down and get his chest to stop glowing.  
He looked at Neon, the only one who had always been there for him ever since the accident happened. South had not been the same ever since, it left a scar on him that could never be erased.  
“You know, Neon? I wish I had learned the ability to erase memories when I was a kid.” He picked up Neon and petted his little head, softly “but I was a dumb kid who thought every memory was worth remembering. I can’t believe how wrong I was” He pressed his teeth and remembered, once again, that traumatizing memory that never let him rest. 

He was just thirteen when it happened, he remembers it as if it had happened yesterday. He was staring out his window as his mom was coming back from her usual work: looking after her people, just like any other warrior had to. He knew she had an important meeting that day, so when he saw her walking towards the door he got excited. South had always been a momma’s boy, it was no secret. His dad had left him before he was even born and he was left alone with his mom, whom he loved and looked up to. There was nothing he loved more than talking with his mom about both of their days, he always listened to his mom with excitement and admiration in his eyes, his mom was his hero.  
He was supposed to wait for her at the door in case anything happened, those were the rules, but he got so caught up thinking about his mom’s day that he forgot to go downstairs. He was looking directly at her when it happened. His mom was getting close to the door when two motorcycles appeared and shot her in the back three times. She fell to the floor, agonizing.  
South’s scream shook the whole town that day, he ran like he had never before and took his mom on his arms. Tears were coming down his face as he tried to help his mom survive, but she was already taking her last breaths. Blood was coming out of her back and her mouth, she was coughing and trying to inhale air.  
“Mom, please” He cried. “HELP! SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME!” He shouted, while trying to press his mom’s back so he could contain her bleeding. He couldn’t stop crying as the pain grew, in his heart and the back of his neck. He felt his birthmark burning, it was turning red, it was time for him to be in charge.  
“I love you, sweetie. Please be strong for me” Those were her last words. Emilia had died.  
South eventually passed out from the stress and the pain and woke up at the secret hospital, with the other knights surrounding him. 

South got too caught up on remembering the incident, and time flew. It was something usual for him though, his attention span was quite short and he often got lost in his own thoughts and memories. For when he stopped remembering, the other three knights were already knocking at his door. He got up and went to open the door, looking at the three of them with a serious face.  
“South, we need your help.” East said and South sighed. They were smart, they knew East was the one South liked the most out of them. After they explained the situation to South, he couldn’t help but to feel guilty for the incident, just like he felt guilty when his mom’s death occurred. He went to his room and brought back Neon and some materials to design a plan. He also brought the information he had about the gang.  
“A rat?” North seemed disgusted by Neon’s presence.  
“Don’t try him, he’ll shape-shift into a lion and eat you alive, and I won’t stop him” South replied, a bit annoyed by North’s expression.  
“So, South, about this gang…. What do we know about them exactly?” West asked, trying to hide the irritation in her tone.  
“First of all, don’t call me that, I’m Ezra” He looked at her as he displayed the different pictures and papers on the table.  
“But that goes against the identity rules” East said and Ezra looked at them before quickly turning his head to the papers again.  
“There can’t be rules for something as complex as identity” Ezra answered, without looking at them. “Here’s everything I know about them. They used to have their main labs here, but I made sure to kick them out of my zone. I believe they have moved to the West and, now that you mention this kidnapping, it makes sense. It’s likely that they didn’t know who you are, West.” He noticed the way they looked at him “What? Don’t give me that look, I won’t follow those “identity rules” but if you want to respect it and want me to call you a certain way then I will, and I hope you do the same. Now focus on this.” He pointed at the papers.

After hours of planning and doing research, they were all exhausted. They decided to eat dinner and Ezra was in charge of the food.  
“I made a traditional dish from South America, it’s called milanesa… it’s kind of like a chicken nugget but ten times bigger” He smiled for the first time since they had gotten there. Ezra truly liked cooking.  
“Oh, it sounds fancy but, does it have meat?” North asked.  
“I made you soy milanesa, I know you are vegan” Ezra answered and then served the food.  
They all seemed to enjoy what he had prepared for dinner. After dinner and some small talk, Ezra turned his living room into a huge bedroom for the three of them. Once he made sure everyone was comfortable and ready to sleep, he said goodnight and went to his room.  
He sat at the window, staring out. He didn’t like the other three knights, they reminded him of his mom and the legacy she left for him. Ezra thought the rest were asleep already, but little did he know they were all awake and talking about him. 

“He smiled” East said. “Did you see it too??” They looked at the rest.  
“Yes, I was surprised as well….” West looked at them.  
“I wasn’t. I know he doesn’t like being around us because it reminds him of what happened, but I think he’s starting to heal from the trauma. You shouldn’t be so rough on him, West.” North looked at her. “You both faced traumatic experiences as kids, you should use that to empathize and bond with him, not to attack him. I feel like you two could use a talk”  
“You’re right, North. It just makes me mad that he’s still holding so strongly to it, I guess it’s because I know how much it hurts him to hold on to it. I will try to talk with him” West got up and went to Ezra’s room.


	2. Bonding

“Hey…” As West entered Ezra’s room, she saw him injecting something into his thigh. Her expression changed completely, she was surprised and, for a brief moment, she could feel the disappointment growing inside her. “What are you doing?!” She asked, in an angry tone.  
When he finished injecting himself, he looked at her. “Honestly it’s none of your business, but it’s not… it’s not what you think it is.” He threw the syringe in his trash can, which was full of other empty syringes as well. West immediately understood, sometimes she forgot about it.  
“Right. I’m sorry.” She said and got closer to him. She sat next to him and swallowed. She struggled a lot when she had to recognize she was in the wrong, and Ezra knew it. “I want to talk to you about... well, a lot of things actually. I think you and I have a lot to discuss and I have a lot to own up to.” Ezra nodded and stayed quiet, he wanted her to go on. “I’m sorry for being so rough on you these past years, we both went through similar experiences as kids and I couldn’t understand why you couldn’t simply let it go the way I did.” She made a pause and then went on “Actually, I still don’t, but I know I can’t just expect you to behave how I want you to. I feel like I should also thank you for the work you do for my people, the South is the most advanced region when it comes to diversity.”  
“You don’t have to thank me for that.” Ezra interrupted her “I do it because it’s what I’m supposed to do and because I believe we all deserve the same rights simply because we’re human beings. Making sure human rights are respected shouldn’t be seen as an accomplishment but rather an obligation.” He looked at his hands, where Neon was sitting and looking at him. Neon seemed to smile.  
“I know, but you have always put so much dedication to it… I feel like it’s something to look up to. Not everyone has the courage you have, boy. It’s not that easy to just fight and give everything you have for the things you believe are the right thing to do.” West finally looked at him, but this time, with pride.  
“I have nothing to lose, I have nothing to be scared of.” He murmured and West heard him, but she chose to ignore him, she could tell the scar was still there.  
“I remember when you were a little kid, you were always this tenacious with your beliefs and views of the world.” She smiled, remembering the times she used to play with Ezra while waiting for his mom to arrive home, who happened to be West’s mentor. “Do you know why your mom gave you that name?” West asked. Ezra shook his head in denial.  
“Because it means helper in Hebrew” West smiled. “And also because it was a unisex name, your mom knew you’d grow up to be whoever you wanted to be and didn’t want you to feel uncomfortable with your own name.”  
Ezra looked away to hide the upcoming tears on his eyes, but West took his face and made him look at her. He was trying to drown his mom’s memory, he didn’t want to cry in front of West, he didn’t like crying in front of other people since it made him feel weak.  
“M-my mom…” he stuttered “…she was your mentor, I remember playing with you as a toddler.”  
“Yes, she was. And she was very proud of you as well, boy.” West smiled at him, and in return, Ezra smiled back. A few minutes went by before Ezra spoke again.  
“I’m sorry for what happened to your dad, he didn’t deserve it.” He sounded hurt and angry, even angrier than West herself when she talked about it.  
“Unfortunately, it’s a reality that most of us used to face back in the west… I was sad at first, but now when I remember him I try to remember him for who he was and not for the way his life ended. He was an inspiration and a role model, he was so many things for me and my family. But the person who took his life didn’t care about that, he didn’t care about who he was or what he was like, he just cared about his desire for blood… and it makes my blood boil. He killed him as if he was worth nothing, as if he was a piece of trash. But he wasn’t, he was…” West felt a sudden loss of words, her dad had meant the world to her but there weren't any words that seemed enough to portray her dad's figure from her point of view.  
“I understand” Ezra brought her back to reality. “I want you to know that I took that group down with North’s help, we made sure they’ll never be able to repeat the awful things they did in the west. Politicians didn’t do anything about it, so we did. I will never forget the things your dad did for me as a kid, I thought I owed it to him and the other victims. I know it won’t bring them back but… at least justice was served.”  
“Thank you Ezra, truly. When the murderer found out that the person he killed came from our family he ran away, and I thought justice would never be served for my dad… I used to stay up late at night questioning why it had to be him and why we hadn’t been able to do anything about it. But now my mind will feel less heavy, for now I know my dad can finally rest in peace.” She hugged him and after some minutes, Ezra hugged her back, he wasn't a physical person.  
He felt good, he knew he had not been able to serve justice for his mom, but at least he did for the man that was like an uncle to him. He closed his eyes, he was exhausted and didn’t want to carry on overthinking and looking too much into things, he knew where he was going to end up if he kept going.  
Even if West and South had spent many years apart, she still knew him quite well.  
“Boy” Ezra smiled a bit, that’s what his mom used to call him after he came out to her. “Stop torturing yourself, please. I can feel your pain from here. Tell him, Neon” West said and Neon made his usual noises, which surprised Ezra because Neon only obeyed him.  
“Wow, you made him talk. You have a gift.” He joked and West rolled her eyes.  
“I’m gonna leave now, goodnight. Please rest well and don’t overthink too much, boy” She got up and left. Ezra took off his contact lenses, he didn’t have any vision problems, he just didn’t want other people to see his emotions through his eyes. He looked at himself in the mirror, and there they were: his blue-black eyes.  
Color-changing eyes are a normal trait in young shadow knights, they usually go away at the age of ten and reveal the knight’s true eye color, but with Ezra it had been the opposite. When he was a small kid his eyes used to be brown, but ever since his mom’s death they had turned blue-black. He missed his brown eyes.

East woke up the following day and checked their phone. To their surprise, there were several messages from their family. They knew what it meant, they were trying to get them back. East had suffered a lot of hate from their family after their coming out, but what kept them going was that they knew they weren’t alone and, once they left their abusive relatives behind, they promised themselves that they would not go back unless their family changed for real. They sighed and deleted the messages from their notification center, they didn’t feel like dealing with that at the moment. They stopped for a moment and realized how happy they were now, away from their toxic family members (they were still in touch with the ones who supported them) and how worth it carrying on fighting had been. East smiled, their life was slowly shaping into what they had always dreamed of.  
“Good morning, sleepy head” Ezra greeted them while waking to the kitchen to get himself some breakfast.  
“Ez, good morning” East smiled.  
Ezra tried to stay away from the other knights, but he liked East a lot. East was the kind of person who was always in the right mood to cheer you up or make you laugh, and Ezra liked having that energy around, even if he didn’t like the bitterness of the memories East reminded him of. For Ezra, East was like an anchor to reality, they helped him keep his feet on the ground without getting carried away by intrusive thoughts or memories he didn't like.  
“Today we have a pretty busy day, we’re travelling to Greiv to get Amanda back.” Ezra said, while making coffee for East and him. He knew he wasn’t supposed to give East coffee because of the excess of energy it provoked in them, but he didn’t care, if East wanted coffee then Ezra would give them coffee. “I haven’t left Refki since I was 14” he said.  
“Well, I promise you other cities can be just as pretty as Refki is! And it’s good for you to leave your comfort zone, or at least that’s what I usually hear North say.” East said, smiling. “You know, Ezra?” East looked at him, they wanted to see the reaction in Ezra’s eyes, they knew he wasn’t wearing his contact lenses. “I know we… we are not the closest friends or anything, but I feel a strong connection towards you, I feel you’re like a younger brother to me” Ezra’s eyes turned orange, as he stood still, with surprise in his face. East was right, they weren’t that close, but Ezra had always thought he was the only one who felt that bond between them.  
“Orange?” East thought. “That represents love… does that mean he feels the same way? Even if the orange dind't last much in his eyes, at least his eyes had finally changed a bit.” They kept staring at Ezra.

“Do you… do you feel it, too?” Ezra looked at them and gave them their coffee.  
“Yes, I do” They replied, taking a sip of their coffee without being careful and forgetting how hot it was. “Awg, idz hawt” They said, with their tongue out.  
Ezra laughed a bit, East was the silliest person he had ever met, but he liked that.  
“You never change, do you?” Ezra drank his coffee while looking at East.  
“It’s not fair, why doesn’t your tongue burn but mine does?” East frowned.  
“It’s called blowing it first” He smiled sarcastically at East then showed them how to blow their coffee.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm still correcting and writing this novel, please be patient and ignore my typos..

**Author's Note:**

> I had to add the prologue two times because it didn't fit the summary section. 
> 
> Some notes about the characters:  
> They are all main characters but I'm planning on doing 4 different "books" to focus on each of them at a time.


End file.
